Member Avatar for sun-tzu

It is by now a well known fact that you can send a text to a sms carriers sms gateway email and the person on the ohter end will get it as a text (e.g. - Verizon).

However, for some reason I am not able to receive mail from my server on my verizon phone. I can send other mail just fine, and I can receive. What is the issue?

Scratch the sendmail part, it is Postfix

Edited by sun-tzu because: n/a
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Two things are worth checking first: whether the recipient’s carrier/account will accept email-to-SMS at all, and whether your server’s network identity looks trustworthy to the carrier. ’s reverse‑DNS suspicion is a common and valid lead, and ’s reminder about a user’s SMS plan is also important — carriers will silently drop or reject inbound gateway mail for accounts that don’t accept SMS.

Server-side checklist

  • Inspect the mail log for the delivery attempt and the exact SMTP response code returned by the carrier gateway (look in /var/log/mail.log or /var/log/maillog). The numeric SMTP reply and text are the primary clue.
  • Verify your SMTP HELO/EHLO name, the server’s A record, and the PTR (reverse DNS) for your public IP all match. Many carriers reject messages when PTR and HELO disagree. Ask your host/ISP to set the PTR to the FQDN you present in EHLO.
  • Check your IP against common DNS blacklists and ensure you have an SPF record (and DKIM if possible) authorizing your sending IP.

Quick live test
Attempt an SMTP session directly to the carrier gateway to capture the server’s immediate response. Example (replace placeholders):

telnet carrier.gateway 25
EHLO mail.example.com
MAIL FROM:<you@example.com>
RCPT TO:<1234567890@carrier.gateway>
DATA
Subject: test
This is a short test.
.
QUIT

If the RCPT or DATA step is rejected you’ll get an SMTP code and text to troubleshoot.

Next steps
If logs show a 5xx rejection mentioning reverse DNS, have the PTR changed to match your HELO. If the gateway accepts but the phone never receives the SMS, contact the carrier to confirm email-to-SMS delivery and any rate or content limits. For reliable, high-volume delivery, consider using a dedicated SMS provider.

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Member Avatar for rubberman

Whether or not you can send an email to a phone and have it delivered as an SMS message would, I think, depend upon the carrier and the options the user has on their account. It is possible that they don't have SMS at all. I know that I don't on my AT&T phone account. Don't want it, don't need it. Since I have a smart phone, email works just fine for my purposes.

Member Avatar for sun-tzu

I guess I wasn't descriptive enough. I am trying to send to my own phone, and I know it works. I think the problem is my reverse DNS.

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